Cases, Cooling & PSU Posts - Page 24

While in San Jose we visited Corsair to see the new lab toy. The Longwin LW-9266 is an advanced fan testing machine but don't let the application fool you. This 45K USD tool is a serious piece of hardware that takes fan testing to levels far beyond the reach of computer component reviewers.

It looks like something from the movies, a cart the bad guys wheel from a truck to blow up a city.

The Alliance for Wireless Power (A4WP) have approved a more flexible wireless power specification that will usher in a new way consumers can wirelessly charge their phones on a variety of compatible surfaces. President of the A4WP, Dr. Kamil A. Grajski, says:

The Alliance for Wireless Power and its members have been focused on creating a more flexible wireless power specification that sets the stage for formal standardization in the future. Approval of the A4WP wireless power specification establishes a true path forward for the commercialization of wireless charging that will satisfy the needs of most consumers. A4WP and its members will now set their sights on building compliant wireless applications that can be integrated by key industries including automotive, furniture and retail.

Your options for a new computer case have just increased as BitFenix has just launched a new chassis dubbed Ghost. According to BitFenix themselves, it features "superb silence with powerful water cooling capabilities and flexibility for the latest hardware," something everyone wants in a computer case.

"After changing the way people think about the mini-ITX form factor with Prodigy, fans around the world have been wondering what would happen if BitFenix were to design a chassis with focus on silence. Today, it gives us great pleasure to reveal the answer to that question - Ghost," says BitFenix Product Manager David Jarlestedt. "Extremely silent yet surprisingly capable, we believe fans of silent chassis are going to fall in love with our newest creation."

That's right, you can now own the power supply that helped TweakTown set a world record just a short while ago. The AX1200i received a Must Have award right here from TweakTown because the device is just that good. And our award for the device was just one of many bestowed upon this excellent power supply.

"We're hugely excited to announce that our award-winning AX1200i PSU is now available to enthusiasts and gamers worldwide", said Thi La, Senior Vice President and General Manager of the PC Components Group at Corsair. "This incredible power supply has created a huge stir in the market, winning numerous prestigious accolades, and securing Corsair's position as the leading manufacturer of premium quality PSUs."

Using a digital design also allows Corsair to provide some cool features: "The use of a Digital Signal Processor also results in a simplified circuit design, and incredible energy efficiency. The AX1200i easily achieves 80 PLUS® Platinum certification, and can operate in a silent fanless mode until the PSU reaches between 30 - 40% of its1200 watt power rating. In addition, the AX1200i's DSP-based design and Corsair Link technology provides real-time monitoring of temperature, current draw, and power efficiency, as well custom control of fan speeds and overcurrent protection settings."

Thermal paste has been a long-time friend of computer enthusiasts, and over the years has evolved and had some great work done to it to reduce those temperatures, even by a few degrees. But, Sony showed off a new product in Tokyo last week that could thermal paste disappear, forever.

Sony revealed a prototype of a silicon and carbon-based thermal sheer which is currently known as "EX20000C" that measures 0.3-2.0mm thick with a thermal resistance of 0.4-0.2K cm2/W and a compress load of around 1-3kgf/cm2 - this is five or six times the effectiveness of Sony's previous solution.

EX20000C is said to meet, if not exceed the thermal conductivity of standard thermal grease. One of the show floor exhibits compared the sheet's effectiveness with a conventional setup and it managed to reduce the processor's temperatures by another 3C. Not only that, it removes the need for cleanup and also prevents over application, as the sheets last longer than paste because they don't degrade.

BitFenix has reaffirmed their commitment to SuperCharge technology which allows mobile devices to charge from a PC. But why is this any different from a regular USB port to charge with? Well, for starters, it has a microchip designed to monitor the voltage required for rapid charging and will provide that voltage so that the device is not damaged.

Further improvements come in the form of using a SATA power connector to prevent the possibility of installing the power cable incorrectly. This prevents users from applying 12 volts when it really should be 5 volts or the other way around. BitFenix also calls out the safety of their implantation over others'. "Recently, similar solutions introduced by competitors have begun making their way into the market, sometimes with hazardous results. In fact, a recent case led to a wire catching on fire during normal operation."

Computex 2012 - We just got done showing you the Antec Reverse, next to it in the Antec meeting room was the near finished version of what the company will probably end up calling the P280S.

For me personally this was the most impressive upcoming product from Antec that I saw today mainly because of the amazing curve shape design which is employed throughout the top and front of the case.

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The power and reset buttons are positioned on the left and right of the top front of the case with the top also have a sexy curved shape that just does it for me. On the top of the case is room for a radiator with a black grill that lets you see inside to see what's happening in that area of the case.

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When you open the front door you see the noise cancelling foam that has been added along with the large front grill for air to flow into the case from the front. Antec tells us that this case is almost done and will go into mass production soon.

Computex 2012 - One of our stops on Day 3 was with Antec where we got access into the upcoming toys area where we got to see a couple upcoming case designs that the company is currently working on right now.

The first one we want to discuss right now is the Antec Reverse. That's a temporary name at the moment for this prototype design and Antec may end up going with something else once it starts shipping around September of this year.

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The Reverse is a case that gets its name for the fact that it can sit on its top or on its bottom. Depending how you are feeling on a certain day, you can just change it around to how you like. Not only that though, but this case supports motherboards up to HPTX. So if you want to run a high-end enterprise level dual socket motherboard in your system, Antec has you covered well here.

Computex 2012 - InWin has impressed us over the few months. I'll be honest and say they've had some weird and wonderful designs over the year, but with their recent open air chassis designs, we've really liked what we've been seeing. We just posted our review of the InWin X-Frame recently which received an award for its features. We also awarded the X-Frame with our TweakTown Computex 2012 Recommended award today as well.

The latest unique open air design from InWin is the H-Frame which will go on sale a little later this year. The two designs we saw today featured some rather bright colors including a pink and orange version along with a black and orange version. You will have the option for a full window side panel or a regular closed panel.

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The front and back of the case are open and are split with a small gap between each panel to allow for air to freely flow in and out of the case. InWin told us in their testing that some system configurations do not even require a case fan due to the open air concept of the H-Frame...

Computex 2012 - Cooler Master's booth featured their amazing Cosmos II Ultra Tower but just a little different this time around, in blue. The case itself features a stylish, race-car inspired design against brushed aluminum and steel.

It can house 10 fans, 13 HDDs total, supports XL-ATX motherboards and 4-way SLI or CrossFireX. It features an Advanced Control Panel that includes 4-channel fan speed control. Ports include USB 2.0, USB 3.0, eSATA and audio-in/out. But, the stand-out thing here is the color. Whether this makes it to the retail channel is another question, but just look at that blue... beautiful.